Devil's Rock - Chris Speyer [67]
In a flash, it was over and I was myself again. For a moment there was absolute silence, then Maunder began to roar, Mrs Ball screamed and Crab gibbered and whimpered nonsense in the corner. Quickly, I took Mrs Ball’s arm and drew her out of the house. When the uproar inside had subsided, I instructed her to re-enter Maunder’s house with me and to behave as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. I knew that both men had taken a good deal of rum before we arrived and I hoped that they might put the apparition they had just seen down to the effects of the drink.
We cleaned the blood from Maunder’s chest and I made a great play of dressing the wound, although there was now not even a scratch on his body. I knew this sleight of hand would not hide the truth for long and that Maunder, when sober, would come demanding an explanation for the ‘miracle’ cure, but I needed time to think. I was sure I could use the events of the night to my advantage but I needed to work out how.
It was almost morning by the time we returned to Mrs Ball’s cottage. Una was waiting. As soon as Una saw us safely home she wanted to leave, to go down to her place on the rocks by the water’s edge. I forced her to remain with us while I told Mrs Ball about our lives in Ceylon, about the Edura and his gift of the bracelets. I even showed Mrs Ball how I could make the grey cat appear and disappear. Mrs Ball listened and watched without asking any questions. Perhaps, being a midwife and a healer, she already knew a good deal about that mysterious thing we call life. Had she and the Edura ever met they would, no doubt, have sat down together and discussed the efficaciousness of different charms and herbal cures. When I had finished my story she called us to sit by her on the settle. She put an arm around each of us like an old mother hen who spreads her wings over her chicks. ‘I have done what I can to protect you,’ she said, ‘but you have shown your hand. These are terrible wicked men. Take care, my dears, take care.’
I did not need Mrs Ball to warn me of the danger we were in but it touched my heart to know that there was still one person in the world who cared for our safety.
Midday brought Maunder to the door with Crab trailing at his heels. ‘I’ve come for the witch,’ were his words when Mrs Ball opened the door to him.
‘Leave the girl be,’ Mrs Ball pleaded, but he pushed past her with a growl and an oath.
‘Here I am,’ I said, as steadily as I could, holding my ground as the giant advanced, menacingly across the room.
‘How do you explain this, witch?’ he demanded, opening his shirt and thrusting a chest covered with matted hair into my face. ‘Where’s the wound?’
‘It appears to have healed,’ I replied, coolly, taking a step back.
‘Witchcraft! That’s what this be – witchcraft!’
‘Witchcraft, aye, witchcraft,’ echoed Crab, sidling around Maunder.
‘Shut yer hatch,’ snapped Maunder and Crab hopped quickly back behind his master.
Maunder placed a huge, rough hand on the back of my neck. ‘What you did last night – I want to know what you did last night – and I want to know how you did it.’ He tightened his grip on my neck and I felt that with one twist and he could snap my spine like a twig.
My mind was racing. For a start, I didn’t know how I had summoned the demon, it had just happened. Secondly, I had no desire to reveal the secret of the bracelets. In addition, I had learnt one very important thing the night before and that was that the bracelets had the power to mend but not to destroy. They could not be used as weapons.
‘I will reveal the secret of my powers,’ I said, grandly, ‘but to you and to you alone. If the